Its behind the paywall, but Austin Stateman is questioning the lower operating costs that Project Connect is citing for East Austin rail:﻿" Austin rail planners are projecting operating costs for a proposed urban rail line that are far below Capital Metro’s per-hour costs to run and maintain its existing MetroRail commuter rail service.MetroRail is different in some key aspects from what the urban rail line would be, including its power source — diesel rather than electricity. But that estimate for keeping the wheels rolling on the projected 9.5-mile urban rail line — $22.1 million in 2022, the year the line would open if all goes as planned — also comes in well under the per-hour cost of operating similar rail lines in several other cities."www.mystatesman.com/news/news/transportation/why-austin-rail-operating-cost-estimate-is-under-s/nf6x3/?icmp=statesman_internallink_textlink_apr2013_statesmanstubtomystatesman_launch

See also:Austin transit planners have estimated the proposed 9.5-mile urban rail route would cost $22.1 million annually to run in 2022-valued dollars and outlined a broad method for how both the Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority and the city would operate and sustain the downtown train system.